The cruise as a venue

Here's another article on music cruises. Some info:

Music cruises riding a wave of success - Reuters, 2/9/07

"Sixthman co-founder Tod Elmore says the company rents boats from Carnival Cruise Lines and pays headliners a flat guarantee with a potential for additional revenue.

"One challenge in orchestrating a music cruise is getting acts to commit in advance ... 'We need a 12- to 14-month lead time,' Elmore says. 'It's hard for an artist to commit that much time in advance unless they know that they don't have much else going on.'

"Carnival VP of group sales and administration Cherie Weinstein says the cruise line has seen an increased interest in music-themed cruises during the last four years. But Weinstein cautions acts who are entertaining the idea of chartering ships for live performances.

"'It is a large financial commitment,' she says. 'You're not just putting a concert in a venue. You can't have the "if you build it, they will come" attitude. You've got to market, market, market and push, push, push.'

"The cost of renting a Carnival ship depends on the size of the boat, time of the year and number of days, but Weinstein declines to give a price range, saying only that 'it's very, very large dollars.'"

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